Wireless-telegraph apparatus.



D. MoF. MOORE. WIRELESS TELEGRAPH APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED IAYB, 1906.

Patented Dec. 5, 1911.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

S INVENTOR Dflfllet m gzrlaq mo'or.

WITNESSES:

ATTORNEY D. MoF. MOORE,

WIRELESS TELEGRAPH APPARATUS.

APPLICATION TILED In a, 1906,

Patented Dec. 5, 1911.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEBT 2.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR fl z zz firt an #700219 ATTORNEYS STATES PATENT on-From DANIEL MOFABLAN MOORE, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNQB TO MOORE ELEC- TRICAL (30., OF NEW YORILJN. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

the gas tension or density within the tube may be kept constant by devices responsive to variations in the density and hence electric resistance of the contained gas.

My invention is particularly useful in wireless telegraph receiving .and transmitting apparatus.

The first .part of my invention is applicable generally to vacuum tubes used in wireless telegraph apparatus or to X-ray'tubes,

vacuum oscillographs and in fact to vacuumtubes used under any conditlons or many situations wherein the working or useful current employed passes only through the gas intermittently and cannot be, therefore, employed as a means for regulating the degree of vacuum. 1

The first part of my invention consists broadly in the combination with a vacuum tube connected into a circuit through which electric current passes only intermittently, of independent means automatically responsive to changes in the gas tension within the tube for feeding gas to said tube and comprising'cssentially a-gas feed device and regulating or operating devices responsive to changes in the resistance, of a circuit including gas which partakes of the tension of the gas in said tube, as hereinafter more particularly described. In carrying out this part of my invention, I prefer to employ regulating or feed adjusting devices the same as described in my original application for patent filed Aug. 21st,'1905, S. N. 27 5,003 and since patented by Letters Patent No. 820,364, dated May 8,1906, wherein ,I describe a gas feed valve which Specification of Letters Patent.

WIRELESS-TELEGRAPH APPARATUS.

feeds gas to a vacuum tube and which is operated by a magnet responsive to changes in the resistanceof the vacuum. In carrying out my invention, the path for the regulating current includes a body of gas which partakes of the tension of the gas or body of gas through which the intermittently flowing current passes for which purpose I may employ a supplemental receiver connected by a tube with the main 7 Patented Dec. 5, 1911. Application filed May 8, 1906. Serial No. 315,725.

tube. However, the use of a separate tube as a separate structure is not essential, it being only necessary that the regulating current should pass through the gas by a path or in a circuit independent of that through.

which a current flows only intermittently.

My invention consists also in the use of a vacuum tube as a detector of electromagnetic waves and in its preferred form, this part of my invention involves the use of a vacuum tube having sealed or internal electrodes which are connected into the receiving circuit, by which the electric waves or vibrations are received as in wireless telegraphing.

My broad invention as applied to .apparatus for generating'or producing electric waves or vibrations bythe oscillatory'discharge comprises a spark gap consistin essentially of electrodes maintained in xed relation. toone another and separated in a vr-cuous space in which, by preference, the vacuum is maintained by automatically feeding gas in such manner as to maintain a constant degree of vacuum. The gas fed into the tube is derived from asource or body of gas which is normally at greater tension or density than that within the tube and is admitted in determinate regulated amounts through a feed device such, for instance, as a valve whose action is automatically governed by changes in the gaseous tension or condition within the tube.

For the purpose of setting forth my invention, I will describe some applications of the same to wireless telegraph apparatus.

In a receiver for wireless tele raphs, my invention is particularly usefu since the vacuum may be regulated to any degree of nicety and may be maintained practically in any desired condition,-thereby making it possible to detect the presence of the slightest current.

As applied to a wireless telegraph transmitting apparatus, it is particular y useful because by regulating the degree of vacuum, the length of the emitted waves may be exactly determined, thus making the invention especially useful under conditions where the prlnciple of syntonizing is employed. Moreover, when once adjusted, the wave lengths and oscillations may be maintained at a regular and constant rate. Further, by the use of a s ark gap of the kind .described,wawes o greater carrying power ma be produced.

1 1 1 the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 re resents diagrammatically one way in whidh my invention may be carried out in a wireless telegraph receiving apparatus.

.Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section through .a preferred form of automatic valve for feeding the gas to the vacuum tube receiver or detector. Fig. 3 illustrates the application of my invention to a modified form of vacuum tube detector. Fig. 4 illustrates diagrammatically the application of my invention to apparatus for generating electromagnetic waves. Fi 5 illustrates a modification in the disposltion of the electrodes used in regulating the vacuum.

Referring to Fig. 1, 7 indicates a vacuum tube having electrodes 6 sealed within it and included in the receiving circuit which receives the electromagnetic waves or vibrations to be detected. Such circuit is typified by the antenna 9 and the ground connection 9'. The visual or audible indicator of -the waves is connected to the circuit in any other source of energy.

way so as to respond to the eflect of the passage of the detached waves across the gap between the internal electrodes 6. As typical of such an indicator, 1 show a telephone 10 connected across the circuit of the detector proper through a battery 11 or By maintaining a vacuum in the receiver 7 at a proper tension, an instrument exceedingly sensitive to the passage of received electromagnetic waves may be secured. As a means for maintaining a constant degree of vacuum, I propose to employ some means for feeding gas to said tube from a body or source of gas of greater density than that normally maintained within the tube, the action of the feed devices being made responsive to changes in the gas tension within the receiver 7 in any desired way. Preferably, I use the changes of electric resistance of the contained gas as a means for controlling the action of the feed devices, for which purpose I employ a regulating electric circuit, a portion of which includes a body of gas partaking of the gas tension or density within receiver 7. This may be accomplished by connecting the receiver 7 through a tube 8 6" to the other of w ich the current continually flows through the interposed gas. Preferably, tube 8 should be made short so that the change of tension in bulb 7 may be immediately felt in the tube 1. Obviously, however, it is not necessary to use another tube 1 and it will be possible to empdoy suplemental electr des 2 sealed in the receiver itself as indic [ed in Fig. 5.

The gas, admitted to the tube or bulb 7 to repair or. restore the vacuum may be admitted thrpugh a feed tube 14 from any bbdy of a'ir or gas normally of greater density than that in the bulb 7. This admission may be controlled by a valve of any desired construction, operated by an electromagnet 19, which may be in the circuit of would feel the changes of'resistance in the 4 gas between electrodes 2. g

The construction of valve may be any desired. By preference I employ the valve construction described in my prior applica tion before referred to and specifically described and claimed in my application filed as a division of the before mentioned application on the 16th of April, 1906, S. N. 311,816 and since patented by Patent No. 855,801, dated June 4, 1907. Such construe tion of valve embodies the following devices: 12 is a mass of porous material preferably consisting of rather dense arc light carbon. The denser the carbon, the less the length of the mass 12 through which the gas is required to pass. The mass 12 is seated as a stopper in the end of a tube 13 joined to tube 14, communicating with tube 8 and located in a chamber 15, preferably of glass, forming a valve chamber with which tube 16, which communicates with a source of air or .qas supply, connects. In the chamber 15 is a body of liquid such asmercury surrounding the mass of porous material 12 and leaving the upper terminal of the same exposed or adapted to be exposed by a slight change of level of the liquid 17. brought isomeric ferred to taper the point of the tip for the purpose of securing a marked change in the. extent of e level of the llquid. I Inasmuch as theplunger osure .for asmall change in the works .in the same body of 1i uid in which the tip of the valve proper is ocated and is.

exposed to the same pressure of incoming air'or gas, it is obvious that any chan es 1n such pressure will not affect the heig t of the liquid so as to disturb the adjustment of the valve, and the same will, therefore,

work in a uniform manner in response to the action of the magnet and irrespective of variations in the pressure of the body of gas constituting the source of supply.

The displacer 18 may be operated bymeans of an electromagnet 19, the laminated core of which, indicated at 20, is held 111 a tubular extension of the tubular di'splacer.

18by a contraction 21. An adjustment of the vertical position of the displacer to de termine the. extent. to which the tip of the mass 12 shall be normally exposed above the level of the liquid may be secured by adjusting the position of the coil 19 of the electromagnet vertically on the tube 15 by means of a screw 22. 'Mercury is preferredbecause it forms an effective airseal and does not clog the pores of .the porous material 12.

The connection to the body of gas which is fed to the tubejs indicated at,16 and such gas being admitted to the chamber 15 passes to the space within the 'plunger through 1 openings in the tubular extension of said plunger as shown so as to reach the tip of the plug or mass 12.

In the operation of the apparatus, the tension of the gas between electrodes 2 is substantially that of the gas in the bulb 7 and if such tension decreases for any reason so as to interfere withthe proper and most delicate operation of said receiver, the resistance between. the electrodes 2'will change and the electromagnet 19 will operate the valve so as to admit more gas and thereby restore the gas tension in 7 to normal. Obviously the tension in 7 which is normally maintained. may be such that a decrease will produce either an increase or decrease of electric resistance of the gas since, as is well known,.there is a critical tension at which the resistance is least and at higher tensions a diminution of the adjusted tension will which the plunger is actuated by the magnet increase the resistance while at lower tensions than such critical tension, a decrease of tension Wlll lower the resistance.

As will be obvious, therefore, the manner in 19- would depend upon the tens on or degree I of' tension to be maintained in the tube or bulb 7 and in the one case, namely, where the decrease of tension raises the resistance,-

the magnet should be arranged to allowfthe plunger to rise by decrease in its own power, while in the other case, that is to say, where the tension ismaintainedat such degree that an increase lowers the resistance of the gas, said magnet should ,act to raise :the

plunger. These, however, are details which do not aflectthe general 'p'rinci le of my in.- vention and the construction o thefeeding devices, and manner of regulating the same may be indefinitely variedfwithout departing-fromlmy invention- As will be obvious, by the use of my invention, it is possible to use an kindof gas in the receiver and to keep t e tension of the same re It thus also ecomes practicable to regulate the sensitiveness of the tube when used as a receiver for a wireless telegraph apparatus.

In Fig. 3 I show another construction of detector for electromagnetic waves embodying my. invention. The bulb 7 of glass or other material has a neck 27 provided with a tube 28'sealed in the neck and terminating in a small glass sphere 29. On the exterior of the neck is a coating of some conencircling which is a band 30 to which connection is made to any generator, as for instance, the secondary 31 of a potential raising transformer having its primary 32 connectedto a very high frequency alternatingcurrent generator 33. The space comprismg the neck, tube and sphere. constitute an independent compartment or space which contains '-.a moderately, rarefied and highly;

lated to any desired degree.

ducting material, as for instance, graphite it acts by induction upon the gas contained in the bulb 7 and thence inductively to the band 34-to complete the circuit. In the'bulb 7 a' brush'discharge or efi'ect will be ohserved, which brush isexceedingly sensitive to magnetic influence or to an electric disturbance or influence of any characterP"to-'" which it may be subjected and will change its position in response to the action of that influence or disturbance. On-the exterior "of the bulb is a conductor 36 which iscon 1 brush wi less tele ap h apparatus. Normally the occupy a particular position or zone in the bulb, but upon'the rece tion of the electromagnetic waves in the circuit 9, 9', its position will be disturbed and thereby the condition of any indicator, visual, audible or of other character in; the circuit of said brush and the generating coil 31, will be aflected. Such an indicating inst-rument may be an audible instrument like the telephone 10, here shown as connected directly into the circuit of the brush. In normal operation the telephone will give forth the sound characteristic of the high tension and high frequency currents flowing from the coil 31 and through the band 34, but a sensible difierence'in their loudness will be observed by displacement of the brush by the action of the received electromagnetic.

waves.

Obviously the indicating instrument might be connected in other ways to the circuit so as to respond to any change in position of the brush consequent upon the action of the electromagnetic waves operating on the brush through the presence of conductor 36. The degree of vacuum in the bulb 7 necessary to stability of action and adjustment is maintained in the manner already described by the automatic feed of a gas into said bulb from a body of gas maintained at greater density than that of the vacuum. Obviously, devices of the same character might be used for maintaining the desired .degree of gaseous tension in the neck 27 and tube 28. The automatic feed is shown as being produced bythe action of an automatic magnetic feed employing a valve in the manner already set forth in connection with Fig. 1.

In Fig. 4 I show my invention as embodied in a standard arrangement of devices for generating electromagnetic waves by oscillatory discharge of a condenser across a spark gap. The generated waves are shown as being utilized through the antenna and ground connection of an ordinary wireless telegraph, but obviously might be ,employed in other ways. The bulb or globe 7 of glass has sealed in it proper dlscharge points or balls 6, which are set at a proper distance apart to allow the discharge of the condenser 40 to take place disruptively through the tenuous gas separating the electrodes or balls 6. The charging of the condenser is effected by the usual transformer 41 connected to any source of alternating current, and the effects of the oscillatory discharge may be transferred through transformer 42 for impression upon the circuit 9, 9' in the usual way. The vacuum in the tube 7 may be maintained at the adjusted tension by the operation of the automatic gas feed devices already described, and since the resistance across the spark gap may be thus maintained at any desired degree,a regular and reliable effect may be obtained in the production of the electromagnetic waves due to an oscillatory discharge: Moreover, the vacuum may be maintained at suchdegree as to facilitate the discharge and thereby give riseto greatly increased effects. It also becomes possible byvarying the vacuum, which may be accomplished through adjustment of the feed, as already explained, to vary the'wave length of the waves produced and to vary the pitch or tone'which' is a valuable feature adapting my invention particularly to use in syntonic systems of wireless or space telegraphy or telephony. V

In some cases the vacuum tube containing the gas through which the electric discharge takes place may have electrodes of such character that the operation of the tube produces an increase of the. gaseous tension therein. n

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a' wireless telegraph, a-vacuum tube receiver and a circuit independent of 'the receiving circuit and made up in part of gas or vapor varying in tension with that in the receiving circuit and an automatic "alve for admitting gas to said receiver to maintain the condition of the vacuum.

2. An electric wave detector consisting of a vacuum tube the tenuous gas in which provides a circuit responsive to the received electromagnetic waves, and an indicating instrument connected thereto, a gas tension regulating circuit and electrodes separated from one another in said gas and forming a path for a continually flowing current in said regulating circuit as and for the purpose described.

3. The combination of an electric wave detector comprising a vacuum tube whose gas forms a part of an electric circuit, with a regulating circuit independent of that for the electric Waves and means responsive to variations in the resistance of thegas or vapor in said regulating circuit for automatically feeding gas to said tube to keep the gas tension and resistance of the tube constant, as and for the purpose described. a

4. The combination with a vacuum tube whose gas or vapor forms a path for an intermittently flowing electric current, of a .regulating circuit including the gas or vap01 and forming the path fora continually flowing electric current and means re sponsive to changes in the resistance of the gas in the regulating circuit for automatically feeding gas to the tube.

5. The combination with a vacuum tube through which electric current flows inter- I or vapor to said tube and a regulating mag- Signed at New York, in the county of 'net responsive to variations in a current New York and State of New-York, this 30th 1(' flowing ctntlilnuaflly tlllirough a. circulit indeday of March, A. 1906. pen ent o t at or t e intermittent flow- 5 ing current and which includes a bh dy of DANIEL MGFARLAN R gas whose tension partakes of the tension Witnesses: of the gas in the gas path through which O. F. TISGHNER, Jr., the current flows intermittently. LILLIAN BLOND. 

